The Age of Vikings
The Age of Vikings (French: L'Âge des Vikings) is the tenth episode of Once upon a time... Man. Mostly set in the late 8th century, it covers the daily life of the Vikings, who lived in Scandinavia and later swarmed across Europe. The previous episode is The Carolingians, and the next episode is The Cathedral Builders. Plot During the 9th century, the Carolingian Empire crumbled, which left Europe wide open to Saracens, Magyars, and Vikings. Back in AD 790, however, we see a rather peaceful Viking village. Pierre is a wealthy freeman who lives in a longhouse with his wife (Pierrette) and two sons (two versions of Pierrot). Jumbo is his thrall, or slave. Maestro is a wise elder. The Pest is the jarl, or chief, and the Dwarf is his thrall. One day, while Pierre, Jumbo, Pest, and Dwarf are going whale hunting, Pierrot and Young Jumbo scale down cliffs to gather seagull eggs and down. The whale hunt is successful, so Pierre and the others return to the village for the festival of the summer solstice, during which Maestro sacrifices a chicken. Dwarf drinks too much mead and gets drunk, whereupon Pierrot and Young Jumbo play tricks on him and Pest, the latter who berates Pierrot for it. Maestro decides to settle Pierre and Pest's argument with a duel. During the duel, Pierre and Pest throw spears at each other and are each made to fire an arrow at a ball on his son's head. Pierre succeeds, but Pest is hesitant. By the time he does fire an arrow he still misses and goes through Maestro's beard hair. Pest is banished as an outlaw, and Pierre becomes the new jarl. Later, Pierre and his men navigate the rivers to fish for salmon. This gives Pest and Dwarf the idea to use the same method to raid other villages. When some villagers inform Pierre about this, he retaliates by fighting and defeating Pest and his men. That night, Pest stages a counterattack, whereupon he and Pierre are killed. Pierre is then given a Viking funeral by his eldest son, who becomes the new jarl in turn. By AD 792, Maestro proposes that Pierrot and his men build longships to sail to far-off places. The process takes a while, each man having his own special task, but at long last, the longships are completed, and loading begins. With Pierrot as their chief, the Vikings sail to Lindisfarne in northern England, where, in AD 793, the first Viking raid takes place. The final segment of the episode details the Viking incursions throughout Europe from the 9th and 10th centuries all the way to the Battle of Hastings in 1066. Historical Inaccuracies * Contrary to the series' assertion, Hastein did not attack Rome, although he did mistake Luna for Rome. * The English dub mistakenly refers to Robert Guiscard's brother as his father. Appearances Historical Figures * Hastein * Rurik * Harald Fairhair (mentioned) * Charles the Fat * Charles the Simple * Rollo * Eric the Red (mentioned) * Canute the Great (mentioned) * Robert Guiscard (mentioned) * William the Conqueror (mentioned) Years and Events * AD 790 * AD 792 * AD 793 * AD 830 * AD 839 * AD 840 * AD 843 * AD 844 * AD 845 * AD 850 * AD 856 * AD 859 * AD 862 * AD 865 * AD 870 * AD 874 * AD 880 * AD 885 * AD 911 * AD 982 * AD 990 * 1028 * 1059 * 1061 * 1066 Locations * Europe ** Norway ** England *** Lindisfarne *** East Anglia ** Ireland *** Ulster ** France *** Rouen *** Nantes *** Paris *** Toulouse ** Italy *** Pisa *** Luna *** Rome ** Russia *** Kiev ** Belgium ** Germany * Asia ** Turkey *** Constantinople Foreign Titles * Original French: L'Âge des Vikings * German: Die Wikinger * Italian: I Vichinghi * Polish: Epoka wikingów * Spanish: Los vikingos Gallery Category:Man Category:Episodes Category:Middle Ages Category:Vikings